Never Gonna Be Alone
by ehee
Summary: Sookie does some soul searching and makes a life-altering decision. One-shot in two parts. Loose follow-up to White Horse.
1. Chapter 1

A/N - This is a little story inspired by Nickelback's _Never Gonna Be Alone. _The last two lines of the story are the first two lines of the song. Enjoy!

PART I

Sookie slowly woke from what had been blissfully dreamless sleep. She grudgingly opened her eyes but the rest of her body remained perfectly still, weighted down by the day-death heaviness of the arm and leg Eric had thrown over her in his sleep. She loved waking like this every afternoon, nestled close to her Viking. She relished the cool comfort of his naked body next to hers, the peace he brought her by his mere presence.

The bedside clock read 4:17. The little red dot beside the numbers was the only indication she had that it was p.m. and not a.m. The lightproof panels on the bedroom windows made it impossible for her to tell otherwise.

After lifting Eric's arm off her waist and shrugging out from under his thigh _(and what a gorgeous thigh it was)_, Sookie rolled toward Eric and kissed him softly, once on the forehead and once on the lips. She lifted the covers off him long enough to quickly admire his glorious nakedness, then she tucked him back in, grinning wickedly to herself.

Donning the robe of navy blue silk she had retrieved from the foot of the bed, Sookie pressed the lock release mounted on the wall and opened the lightproof bedroom door. She stepped into the small antechamber and pulled the door closed behind her. The _click-click_ that followed told her the door was secure and it was safe to open the outer door that led to the rest of the house.

Sookie padded to the kitchen, yawning heavily and rubbing her face with her hands. She needed coffee – badly. For one silly moment she thought about just tossing a handful of coffee beans in her mouth and chewing on them, just to see if the caffeine would work faster that way. She could definitely use it this afternoon. Instead, she put the grounds into the basket, poured the water and flipped the switch of the warming plate. The Bunn was great – three short minutes and her joe was ready.

It had been a short night (OK,_ day_) by Sookie's usual standards. She and Eric had been up until almost six a.m., until the pull of the rising sun had forced him into his daytime slumber. It was the third week of December, the meaty part of winter when the nights are longest. This was Sookie's favorite time of year because there were more hours to spend with her Viking. She had been a sun worshipper for the first twenty-six years of her life, but in the eight years she had been with Eric she had done a complete about-face. She was now like him, a child of the night. _Well, almost like him._

Sookie carried her cup of coffee to the den where she wrapped herself in her "truly hideous" quilt and curled up on the end of the soft leather sofa. She thought about how she was going to approach Eric. She wondered how he would react to her request. A part of her feared his rejection; a part of her dreaded his compliance.

It had been almost six years since she left Gran's house in Bon Temps to make a life with Eric in Shreveport. It had taken over a year of constant hounding on Eric's part to convince her it was a good move. In the end, he had been right, of course. But, then again, he usually was.

Gran's house, Jason, and her job at Merlotte's were all she left behind in Bon Temps. Leaving the house was hard, to be sure. Nearly all of her childhood memories revolved around that old house. Amelia had been more than happy to rent it. A couple of her witch friends from New Orleans were glad to leave the city and move in with her after Octavia left. Sookie knew the house was in good hands, and if someone other than her had to live there, she was glad it was Amelia.

Leaving Sam had been much harder. She had worked for him for seven years when she told him she was leaving. They had held each other and cried in his office, both promising to call and visit whenever they could. And they did keep in touch, phoning every week or two and visiting every couple of months or so.

Jason...her wild, beautiful, were-panther brother. Her heart lurched in her chest as his memory tore through her mind. She nearly choked on her mouthful of coffee and it burned like hundred-proof going down. Jason had been savagely gunned down five years ago while roaming the woods during a full moon. It had been after the Were Revelation, but there were still humans who hunted the two-natured as if they were fair game. On most days now she could think about him without tearing up; that was an improvement, anyway.

Her life with Eric proved to be all she could have imagined, and then some. It hadn't been easy in the beginning. The first six months she wandered aimlessly through the days when Eric was asleep, slept at night when he was awake, and hated herself for not having a job so she could help pay her own way.

That had really been their only point of contention. Eric came from a world where men were the providers; she had never really had a man in her life, and all she knew was fending for herself. Many arguments had ensued, followed by lots of great make-up sex, and in the end she had agreed to "tend the nest" while he "brought home the bacon." She still considered the idea archaic, but it was a concession (albeit a large one) she had made to keep peace with Eric.

Thirty minutes of musing and three cups of coffee later, Sookie headed back toward the master suite. She pressed the heel of her thumb to the scanner on the wall by the outer door and heard the locks click as they slid open to grant her access. She repeated the process with the inner door and entered their bedroom, securing the door behind her.

After six years she still wasn't used to all of the added security measures, but she knew they were necessary to ensure Eric's safety. Being the oldest and most powerful Sheriff in Louisiana made him the second most powerful vampire in the state, second only to the King himself. With power came enemies, and in her mortal state there was little she could do to protect him while he slept during the day.

Sookie walked quietly across the room to the adjacent bathroom and closed the door behind her. After taking care of her "human needs," as Eric so eloquently referred to it, she washed her hands and brushed her teeth. She decided to wait on a shower until Eric rose, figuring she would need one if he woke today wanting her the way he did most days.

Leaning close to the mirror above the sink, Sookie inspected herself closely. She could see tiny lines forming around her eyes, and a little of the youthful fullness was gone from her face. She was still a knockout by anyone's standards, but every day she could see little changes in her appearance. She was only thirty-four, not old by any means, but not getting any younger, either.

She and Eric had hoped that the combination of her fey heritage and regular doses of Eric's blood would slow her aging, but it appeared that wasn't going to happen. They had discussed the situation at length with Niall who said that being only one-eighth fairy wasn't enough to significantly extend her lifetime. Not even his magic could help her, he had been saddened to report. Ingesting Eric's ancient blood had always enhanced her appearance, but it was only a temporary state. A few days' time and she would be back to regular ol' Sookie.

Sookie looked long and hard into the mirror, past her eyes and down deep into her soul. She saw the struggle there, the indecision that had been tearing at her for nearly a year. The war she had waged with herself on a daily basis would soon end. Not by a truce, like the one she and Eric reached over money, but by out-and-out annihilation. Pragmatic Sookie had conquered Ambivalent Sookie. She now knew what she wanted, and she wasn't going to be satisfied with anything less.

_**Time, is going by, so much faster than I**_

_**And I'm starting to regret not spending all of it with you...**_

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

A/N - Thanks for all your wonder reviews for Part I -- here is Part II for your reading pleasure! The last two lines of the story are the last lines of the song.

The characters in this story belong to Ms Harris - bless her heart for introducing them to us!

Part II

Sookie slipped off her robe and crawled into bed beside Eric, winding herself in his limbs while he slept. The bedside clock read 5:03; he would wake soon. He loved finding her in bed with him when he roused from his day-death, and she loved being the first thing he saw when he opened his eyes.

"Good evening, lover," Eric crooned as he kissed her cheek and then her lips. True to his vampire nature, he woke hungry and horny. Sookie expected no less, and she rolled toward him and pressed her nakedness to his.

_This is it,_ she thought to herself. _This will be our 'last time together.' _She would commit to memory this one single act of loving him. All of the other times, including the first time, _in her shower_, suddenly seemed less significant.

It was sweet, slow, and satisfying.

Afterwards they lay panting and spent, limbs tangled and Sookie's head resting on Eric's shoulder.

"Eric..." Sookie began hesitantly.

"Yes, my lover?" Eric murmured into her hair as he stroked her shoulder.

Sookie swallowed hard. "We need to talk."

"What is it you wish to discuss?"

"I want you to do something for me," Sookie replied. "Actually, I want you to give me something. Call it an early Christmas present." She knew Eric didn't really celebrate Christmas, but it was only a week away and she hoped the giving spirit of the season had found its way to him.

Eric continued to stroke her shoulder. "You know I will give you anything you desire, lover." He had fought hard to finally convince Sookie to allow him to take care of her. Now she was actually _asking_ him for something.

Eric's undead heart leapt as he wondered what it was she wanted. Maybe she wanted a new car (her little BMW Z4 was a couple of years old, maybe she was tiring of it.) Or, she may desire another piece of jewelry (he had already given her a hundred carats worth of precious gems, including the four carat baguette-encrusted diamond solitaire she wore on her left hand -- the engagement ring that would be joined by a wedding band as soon as the idiots in the Louisiana legislature legalized vampire/human marriage.)

"You may want to retract that statement when you find out what I want," she cautioned him.

Eric was truly puzzled. He suddenly remembered a speech he heard years ago. The speaker had described something as "a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma." That was his Sookie, alright.

"There is nothing I would not give you, dear one," he reassured her.

"Does that offer extend to immortality?" Sookie's voice was a mixture of timidness and self-assurance.

Eric was stunned. For the first time in as long as he could remember, he was at a loss for words. A myriad of emotions flooded through him and the bond. It was several moments before he collected himself enough that he dared speak

"By immortality I assume you mean..." He silently cursed himself for the quiver he heard in his voice.

"You know exactly what I mean, Eric." Sookie's voice was more confident now. Each passing minute only fueled her resolve. She knew she had to do this now before she lost her nerve.

Eric dared to be hopeful. "But you never wanted to consider this before. You would not even discuss it with me. Why the change of heart?"

"I've been doing a lot of thinking. About you...about me...about us. This is my life, here with you. You are my _only_ life. I have no kin left except Hunter. But the way our lives are scrutinized, you know I can't have a relationship with him without revealing his ability. He's twelve years old now, old enough that every vampire king and queen in the world will be vying for him if he's found out. I can't have that."

Sookie paused and sat up in the bed. She looked at Eric with serious eyes -- eyes that said this was not a lark or a whim, but a carefully considered decision from which she wouldn't back down.

"I'm not getting any younger, Eric. I'm thirty-four years old and getting older with each day that passes. I've given up hope that my fairy bloodlines and taking your blood will keep me young."

Sookie fought back the tears as she thought about how her life was nothing like she had imagined it would be when she was younger. She had always thought she would eventually marry, raise a couple of kids, grow old, and then die. That was pretty much the way of life for most humans. After falling in love with her Viking, her mortal dreams no longer a possibility, she realized growing old was the last thing she wanted to do. All that was important to her now was being able to stay with him..._forever_...or at least far beyond the range of her piteously abbreviated human life expectancy.

A single tear breached her lower eyelid and tracked down her face; Sookie wiped it away with the back of her hand. "You are my family now. I can't bear the thought of leaving you. Please..." She was practically begging. "Do this for me..._for us._"

Eric's piercing blue eyes searched Sookie's face as he silently questioned her decision. In the past they had talked a few times about her coming over, but the discussions were always brief and usually ended with frustration on his part and obstinacy on hers. Inwardly he was exhilarated by her request. Pragmatic Eric, however, needed more reassurance before committing then to such a life-altering event.

Eric leaned back against the headboard and pulled Sookie to him, the warm softness of her back resting against the cool firmness of his muscular chest. _'I will miss her warmth,'_ he thought briefly to himself. He buried his face in the top of her head and inhaled the sweetness of her, her mixture of human and fairy that filled his senses like a field full of wild flowers. He would miss that, too.

What he would not miss would be the incessant nagging that buzzed in the back of his brain. The nagging daily reminder that too soon she would be gone from him, her mortal life finished, while he would be forever damned to roam the earth without her.

As her would-be maker, Eric felt it was his duty to caution her about her decision before he actually committed to the act. "Sookie, you realize this is not something to do on a whim. Most vampires are vampire not by choice, but by circumstance. Few mortals actually choose to be turned; even fewer vampires deem them worthy of coming over."

"I know this, Eric," she replied evenly. "I've been thinking about this for the better part of a year. I have no one but you, and I want to be with you. Always."

If his heart still beat, Eric's would have lurched at the sincerity of her words. A single drop of pink spilled from the corner of his eye and slid down his smooth face. Eight years of dreaming was finally becoming a reality. He closed his eyes and thanked the gods for this bountiful blessing.

But there was one more hurdle before they crossed the finish line. The blood bond. This would be Eric's only real concern should he decide to give her the gift she begged for.

"Dear one, I do not know what impact our bond may have on the turning process," he admitted to her. "Few vampires and humans have as strong a bond as ours..." Eric paused as he felt the wave of love and understanding she sent to him, "...and I have never heard of a human being turned by their bonded. I am afraid we are entering the realm of the unknown, and I would not be truthful if I said I did not have concerns about our outcome."

But Sookie had planned ahead for this argument. She, too, had this concern, but she trusted the bond, trusted in its magic. Most of all she trusted in_ them _-- herself and Eric.

"I'm willing to take that chance," she replied softly. "I'll take whatever chances are needed to make this happen."

Sookie turned around to face Eric. Taking his face in her hands, she placed a gentle kiss on his lips. "I'm ready, Eric. I want this more than anything."

"Alright, I will do it. _For us._" Eric pulled her on top of him and kissed her mouth hungrily, relishing one last time in her sweet warmth. _'Goodbye, my warm lover. Welcome, my forever lover.' _

Sookie clung tightly to Eric as he wrapped her in his arms and rolled her over on the bed. He looked down into her blue eyes that were clear with understanding. "I love you," he murmured.

"I love you back," Sookie whispered as she felt Eric's fangs pierce the soft skin of her neck. She gasped lightly at the initial sting, and then sighed into his shoulder as she felt Eric draw heavily on the wound.

Eric moaned as the sweet saltiness of his lover's blood filled his mouth. He drank greedily, never before having the privilege of this indulgence. He bravely fought his overwhelming need to enter her. This bloodletting was not about sex -- it was about love, commitment, and their overpowering need to belong.

He drank from her until only a tiny spark of life remained in her body. Putting his wrist to his mouth, he tore his own skin and held out his arm to her. "Drink, lover," he told her as he let his own blood flow into her mouth.

Fueled by the thick sweetness of Eric's blood on her tongue, Sookie took his wrist in her weak grasp and fed from him. Each pull from her lips echoed through his body and reverberated in his throbbing hardness. She took one last hard draw from Eric's wrist before the wound closed, and he shuddered as the release he had so valiantly tried to restrain spilled forth.

Taking a moment to collect himself, Eric carefully tucked Sookie into her side of their bed. He stretched out beside her, sated and satisfied. He would wait beside her until it was time for him to prepare for her awakening. For the first time in a thousand years, he was complete.

**_I'm gonna be there all the way_**

_**I won't be missing one more day...**_

**Fin**


	3. Author's Note

A/N - I truly appreciate all the wonderful reviews and PMs from everyone regarding this story. When the idea came into my head, I planned on it being just another one-shot, like _White Horse._ Then I saw the loose tie-in between the two stories and it blossomed from there. I have had several requests to continue with the story of Sookie's new un-dead life. I am giving it serious consideration, and I want to thank you all for your interest in my continuing. I don't know how successful I would be at working on two stories at the same time – this whole writing thing is still new to me! I do promise that if anything of substance starts flowing, I will get it out to you!

Thanks again for reading!

ehee


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